Seminaries and Support

The Jewish Theological SeminaryFounded in 1886 as a rabbinical school, The Jewish Theological Seminary today is the academic and spiritual center of Conservative Judaism worldwide, encompassing a world-class library and five schools. JTS trains tomorrow's religious, educational, academic, and lay leaders for the Jewish community and beyond. JTS schools and facilities include The Graduate School; The Rabbinical School; H. L. Miller Cantorial School and College of Jewish Music; William Davidson Graduate School of Jewish Education; Albert A. List College of Jewish Studies; the Rebecca and Israel Ivry Prozdor High School, a model supplementary high school; a summer school; five research institutes, including the Melton Research Center for Jewish Education; lay leadership and professional institutes; community education programs; student residence halls; and the incomparable collections of JTS's world-renowed Library.

Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies The Schechter Institute is one of Israel's leading academic centers for modern Jewish learning. Located in Jerusalem, it was established in 1984, with four rabbinical students. Today, its Graduate School boasts 655 graduates with advanced degrees in Jewish Studies and a current enrollment of over 450 students. The Schechter Rabbinical Seminary has ordained fifty-five rabbis who have assumed leadership positions in Israel and around the world. It also houses the TALI Education Fund, a nationwide education program providing enriched Jewish Studies in 120 public schools and pre-schools, and Midreshet Yerushalayim, an adult education network which teaches Jewish Studies to immigrants from the former Soviet Union in thirty locations all over Israel and which runs a network of schools and educational programs in twelve communities throughout Eastern Europe.

The Seminario Rabinico LatinoamericanoFounded in 1962 by Rabbi Marshall T. Meyer, z"l, the Seminario Rabínico Latinoamericano is the academic, cultural, and religious center of the Conservative Jewish Movement (Masorti) in Argentina and Latin America. The main goal of the Seminary is to train and ordain rabbis with the aim of spreading and perpetuating Judaism in Latin American communities. As of its creation, eighty-three rabbis (including seven women rabbis) have graduated. They currently work at different communities in Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Peru, Brazil, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Mexico, Paraguay, Bolivia, Dominican Republic, San Salvador, and also in the United States.

Ziegler School of Rabbinic StudiesThe Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies made history when it opened the first independent rabbinical school on the West Coast. It is a full-fledged five-year rabbinical school that values rigorous scholarship, embraces the splendors of spirituality, and provides its students with vast opportunities to grow intellectually and spiritually. On the idyllic campus of the University of Judaism, in Los Angeles, and in an atmosphere that places great emphasis on personalized teaching, its students open their minds and hearts to the texts and traditions of the Jewish religion, feel the presence of God in their lives, and assume the ever-expanding roles and responsibilities offered to those entering the Conservative rabbinate of the twenty-first century.

United Synagogue of Conservative JudaismThe United Synagogue, founded in 1913, is the association of Conservative congregations in North America, today consisting of 760 affiliated synagogues and over 1.5 million members. The objectives of The United Synagogue are set forth in the preamble to its constitution as follows: "The advancement of the cause of Judaism in America and the maintenance of Jewish tradition in its historic continuity; to assert and establish loyalty to the Torah in its historic exposition; to further the observance of Sabbath and the Dietary Laws; to preserve in the Service the reference to Israel's past and the hopes for her restoration; to maintain the traditional character of the liturgy, with Hebrew as the language of prayer; to foster Jewish religious schools, in the curricula of which the study of the Hebrew language and literature shall be given a prominent place . . . "

Professional Organizations

Rabbinical AssemblyThe Rabbinical Assembly is the international association of Conservative rabbis. Since its founding in 1901, the Assembly has been the creative force shaping the ideology, programs, and practices of the Conservative movement, and is committed to building and strengthening the totality of Jewish life. Its nearly 1,600 members serve as congregational rabbis, educators, military and hospital chaplains, professors of Judaica, and officers of communal service organizations throughout the world.

Cantors AssemblyThe Cantors Assembly is the largest organization of professional Hazzanim in the world. With offices at The Jewish Theological Seminary and affiliated with The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, it serves the needs of its members, congregations, and helps to preserve and enhance the traditions of the Jewish people.

Jewish Educators AssemblyThe Jewish Educators Assembly is the professional membership association representing a broad range of educators and educational administrators who identify with the Conservative Movement. They are dedicated to the advancement of Jewish educators and the enhancement of Jewish education in North America. The mission of the JEA is to promote excellence among educators committed to Conservative Jewish Education by advancing professionalism, encouraging leadership, pursuing lifelong learning, and building community.

North American Association of Synagogue ExecutivesThe North American Association of Synagogue Executives (NAASE) is a membership organization serving the professional needs of Jewish Executive Directors of the Conservative Movement, as an affiliate of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, and in association with the Jewish Theological Seminary of America and the Jewish Communal Service Association.

The Joint Retirement Board for Conservative JudaismThe JRB was founded in 1945, using proceeds from a trust fund established during his lifetime by the late Jacob H. Schiff, to begin offering independent pension plans. JRB provides a New York City-based headquarters to service accountholders from the movement’s rabbis, cantors, and personnel throughout the world. JRB’s dedicated professional staff is led by a distinguished group of thirteen volunteer trustees and two observers whose combined knowledge and experience of over 175 years of service to JRB continually enhance our Plan.

Men's Clubs and Women's League

Federation of Jewish Men's ClubsThe Federation of Jewish Men's Clubs is an organization of approximately 270 Conservative/Masorti Jewish men's groups consisting of 25,000 individuals across North America and the world. The FJMC involves Jewish men in Jewish life by building and strengthening Men's Clubs in the Conservative/Masorti Movement.

Women's League for Conservative JudaismWomen’s League for Conservative Judaism is the largest synagogue-based women’s organization in the world. As an active arm of the Conservative/Masorti Movement, it provides services to 600 affiliated women’s groups in synagogues across North America. Its network links 120,000 women in twenty-five branches (regions), together with groups in Israel, Great Britain, and South America. Through its volunteer programs and projects geared toward education, religious observance, Israel, and public policy and advocacy, members can expand their knowledge and commitment to Judaism, participate in contemporary issues, and support Jewish ideals worldwide.

Youth and Education

Solomon Schechter SchoolsThe Solomon Schechter Day Schools encompass seventy-six schools, spanning eighteen states in the United States and two provinces in Canada. The Solomon Schechter Day School Association operates under the umbrella of The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism's Commission on Jewish Education and is supported professionally by the United Synagogue's Department of Education. The schools are independent and each has its own Board of Directors. However, they share an affiliation and identification with the religious philosophy, principles, beliefs, and practices of the Conservative Movement.

National Camp RamahRamah is the camping arm of the Conservative Movement. It pursues its mission of creating educating communities in which people learn to live committed Jewish lives, embodying the ideals of Conservative Judaism, through two main educational settings: summer camp and winter retreats, and through intensive programs in Israel. The network of Ramah camps throughout North America now serve over 6,500 campers and over 1,500 university-aged staff members every year.

United Synagogue YouthThe general aim of the United Synagogue Youth program is to bring about a meaningful and fully reciprocal encounter of Judaism, the Jewish people, and the Synagogue on one side, and the Jewish teenager on the other. USY provides Jewish teenagers with demonstrations and experiences of the Jewish way of living, through study, action, and fellowship, which aims to lead them toward personal fulfillment and growth while meeting spiritual and social needs, and also helping them to make a significant contribution to their synagogue, community, society, and the Jewish people.

KoachAs Conservative Judaism's College Outreach Program, Koach helps to connect college students with their Jewish heritage, as well as with the Jewish community on their campus and on campuses throughout North America and Israel. It works closely with Hillel and Jewish student organizations, providing grants, social programs, learning projects, trips to Israel, regional conferences, and much more.

The Conservative Yeshiva in JerusalemThe CY was founded in 1995 to meet the need for serious learning in a co-ducational and open-minded environment. Since then the CY has grown from five students to over fifty students. It has moved into its own building and has established a reputation for a learned and supportive faculty, highly motivated students, in depth learning, and a welcoming community. The CY teaches Jews of all backgrounds the skills for studying Jewish texts in a supportive Jewish community. Its goal is to give students the ability and the desire to continue Jewish learning and practice throughout their lives. The CY offers a synthesis of traditional and critical methods, allowing Jewish texts and tradition to encounter social change and modern scholarship. The curriculum focuses on classical Jewish subjects, including Talmud, Tanach, Halacha, and Philosophy.

Ramah Programs in IsraelOne of the Ramah Commission's main focuses is on its educational programs in Israel, which range from high school summer missions, to Lilmod UleLamed: A Year of Learning and Working in Israel, to custom-built one- to three-week programs in Israel for schools, synagogues, and other community organizations, to Jerusalem day camps. All of the programs reinforce Ramah's mission of creating a lifelong dedication to communities which continue to "raise up" committed volunteer and professional leadership for the Conservative Movement and contemporary Jewry.

The Conservative Movement Worldwide

The Jewish MuseumFor over a century, The Jewish Museum, located in the Warburg family mansion on Fifth Avenue at 92nd Street along New York's prestigious Museum Mile, has been both a source of inspiration and knowledge for an audience of visitors of all cultural backgrounds, and a special touchstone of identity for a diverse population of Jewish people. A renovation project doubled the gallery space, added a glorious permanent exhibition, created classrooms and an auditorium for educational programs, and improved public amenities, including a café. Through more than 28,000 objects including painting, sculpture, works on paper, photographs, archaeological artifacts, ceremonial objects, and broadcast media, the Museum's collection demonstrates Jewish identity and its evolution through visual art. It is one of the largest, most extensive collections of its kind in the Western Hemisphere.

MERCAZ USAMERCAZ USA is the Zionist arm of the Conservative Movement, linking Conservative Jews in America with the State of Israel, the Jewish People and Conservative/Masorti congregations in Israel and throughout the world.

Masorti WorldMasorti Olami Jewish World, the world council of Conservative Synagogues, is the center of the worldwide Masorti Movement. It stands at the center of global efforts to strengthen Conservative Judaism through all branches of the community: synagogues, schools, camps, youth groups, and leadership networks anywhere that Jews reside: Western and Central Europe, Eastern Europe and the FSU, Latin America, Australia, and South Africa.

Assembly of Masorti Synagogues (United Kingdom)The Assembly of Masorti Synagogues is the umbrella body that serves all Masorti communities in Britain, providing community members with resources to help keep them connected both to one another and to the Masorti world at large.

Masorti Movement (Israel)Masorti, meaning "traditional," is the Hebrew name for the movement of Conservative Judaism in Israel. The Masorti Movement, founded in 1979, is the umbrella organization of Masorti kehillot (congregations), which foster the practice of traditional Judaism among Israeli men and women while embracing modernity. In promoting the combined values of Conservative Judaism, religious tolerance, and Zionism, the Movement strives to nurture a healthy, pluralistic, spiritual, and ethical foundation for Israeli society. Approximately 50,000 Israelis are members and affiliates of their kehillot and national programs, which engage some 125,000 Israelis each year.